Call termination, or voice termination, relates to the transfer of telecommunications sessions (e.g., telephone calls, data, image, or multimedia transfer, etc.) from one telecommunications exchange to another. The telecommunications exchange, in some examples, can include a telecommunications carrier such as a competitive local exchange carrier (CLEC) or an incumbent local exchange carrier (ILEC), or a telecommunications service provider. The call initiator resides at the originating point, and the call destination resides at the terminating point.
The originating telecommunications exchange can elect to transfer the telecommunications session to a terminating telecommunications exchange. The terminating telecommunications exchange, in some implementations, advertises a cost related to termination services. For example, the originating telecommunications exchange can choose to transfer the telecommunications session to a terminating telecommunications exchange which advertises the lowest cost termination services or lowest cost rate (LCR).
In some implementations, the terminating telecommunications exchange includes a different network type than the originating telecommunications exchange. The network can include, in some examples, packet-switched data networks (e.g., the Internet, intranets, extranets, subnets), the public switched telephone network (PSTN), wireless networks, local area networks (LANs), wide area networks (WANs), peer-to-peer networks, satellite networks, radio and television broadcast networks, optical networks, metro area networks (MANs), computer networks, grid networks, exchanges (e.g., private branch exchange (PBX)), broadband integrated data services network (B-ISDN), access networks, digital subscriber lines (DSL), cable, etc. The terminating telecommunications exchange can be selected by the originating telecommunications exchange, in part, due to the type of destination communications device (e.g., the style network the communications device is adapted to use). The communication devices can include any device capable of transmitting or receiving voice and/or data, including but not limited to: telephones, smart phones, mobile phones, personal digital assistants (PDAs), computers, FAX machines, Internet-enabled devices, media players, set-top boxes, email devices, etc. For example, the originating telecommunications exchange may be a public switched telephone network (PSTN), while the terminating telecommunications exchange may be a voice over internet protocol (VoIP) broadband network, or vice-versa.
Call detail records are generated upon termination of a telephone connection. The information within the call detail records can be used by a telecommunications provider to determine proper billing charges for services rendered. A call detail record can contain, in some examples, the originating telephone number, the receiving telephone number, an origination timestamp, and the call duration. Additionally, the telecommunications provider can collect other information within call detail records, such as a record identification code, the result of the call (e.g., completed, busy, etc.), specific routing information regarding the call, or special features used during the call (e.g., call waiting, conference line, etc.).
Billing charges typically include termination services charged by the terminating telecommunications exchange that are based on a fixed cost per minute compensation structure. This results in the terminating telecommunications exchange receiving the same per minute rate from an originating telecommunications exchange or from a third-party carrier regardless of the rate that the originating telecommunications exchange or the third-party carrier is collecting from its customer (i.e., the originating caller). The terminating telecommunications exchange basically relies on accurate self-reporting from the originating telecommunications exchange or the third-party carrier. Moreover, typical compensation structures only take into account long distance charges, so that the terminating telecommunications exchange is not compensated for local calls. This may be especially problematic when the terminating telecommunications exchange is a wireless carrier as tracking of long distance versus local communication sessions is difficult.
Thus, an improved compensation structure that provides transparency and maximum value for terminating telecommunications exchanges is desired.